


Don't Trip, Potato Chip!

by solfell



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Human, F/M, Fandom Allusions & Cliches & References, POV Alternating, Ridiculous, Run-On Sentences
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-09-14
Updated: 2015-09-14
Packaged: 2018-04-20 20:24:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,767
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4801079
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/solfell/pseuds/solfell
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Cullen Rutherford, resident New Kid at Frostback High, somehow catches the eye of Roshanak Adaar, captain of the women's basketball team and leader of the local band of misfits.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Don't Trip, Potato Chip!

**Author's Note:**

> [Edit] Reposting because I'm an idiot, and accidentally deleted it while editing... ughhhh why.
> 
> My brain/mind's eye gave me this nugget of an idea: Roshanak/Cullen high school AU, with Ro going up to Cullen and asking, "What's cookin', good-lookin'?" and him turning beet-red. Roshanak is completely thrilled by his sudden change in coloration. (Cullen-Chameleon! Cullen-Cuttlefish!)
> 
> This quickly got out of hand. Surprise, surprise. I should add--this story is written very informally. I basically pounded this chapter out in an allergy-drug-induced haze and let myself be loose with language. Syntax went out the window, along with my ability to distinguish good decisions from bad ones.
> 
> Warnings: Mentions of depression/anxiety, past physical/mental abuse, mentions of teenagers taking doctor-prescribed medications (according to their doctor's instructions, but if you have issues with meds, please be careful), possible mention of an eating disorder (but I still don't know if that was what happened?), mentions of homophobia

Cullen knows how it goes in stories. He grew up with his nose in a book, and had the benefit of two nerdy, older siblings. Mia exposed him to all kinds of science fiction while Branson favored fantasy and the supernatural. Regardless, Cullen knows fictional high schools. He's genre savvy. 

So, here's the setting: High school, nondescript enough to stand for all high schools, with long-established social hierarchies, exaggerated for effect, or from lack of creativity on the part of the writers. The jocks, the preps, the nerds, the band kids, et cetera, et cetera. New kid shows up, instant popularity or instant rejection. Depends on the story. But lo! one person emerges and befriends the new kid, shows them a whole new world of romance and friendship. A manic pixie dream girl. (Or boy. Cullen is confused by human sexuality. Especially his own.) Modern day fairytale stuff, that's all what high school stories are.

But, anyway, he's not a trope. The stuff that happens on the TV and in the movies--that's _not_ what's going to happen to him at Frostback High.

He's already done this before. Frostback High's going to be the second high school he's attended in the last two years. The first, Kirkwall Academy, was... not a good fit. It was a nightmare. He's better off not thinking about it, and plans on keeping his head low until college and hopefully he won't have to transfer to yet another school before then and create another giant headache for his parents.

Going back to Honnleath wasn't an option. Not after Kirkwall. At least they understood.

He's grateful that Mia has an apartment in Haven, and she's willing to let her baby brother live with her. Mia is his favorite big sister. He's told her as much, and it makes her grin. Also, she has a corgi named Gwen who likes Cullen. That's something he's looking forward to. There were no pets at Kirkwall Academy. There weren't even any campus squirrels.

* * *

Roshanak Adaar is on the girl's basketball team; she's captain, in fact, even though she's only a junior. The senior players are actually okay with that, which is only less hassle to deal with. Probably helps that she friends with all of them. Anyway, Cassandra would punch anyone who dared to screw with Ro. Not that Ro can't fight her own battles. She's just... never had to. 

Outside the team, she has a really eclectic group of friends, and is well-liked but not part of the "in-crowd." Celene, Briala, and that whole clique are cool people. Ro's okay with them, they're okay with her. Everything is okay. She'd step on any bullies if she had them.

First day of junior year. It's kind of exciting, but also half her high school career is over and that's more than a little daunting.

It's fine. Even in her head, the words sound frazzled.

And there's a new kid. There are several new kids (see: all the incoming freshmen, tiny babies, the lot of them) but the new kid in her first class is unexpected. Chemistry first thing in the morning. Normally, she wouldn't've noticed anything interesting or new so early in the morning but it's the first day. She's wired. Had a couple toaster strudels. Coffee. Sugar. 

The new kid's sitting in the back row, in the far corner. A handful of student are in other seats, Ro recognizes all of them, and waves at a couple of the rugby players. Sigrun grins and Velanna waves back. Roshanak doesn't stop to talk to them; they'll catch up later. She makes a beeline to the back row.

The new kid's eyes go a bit wide when she asks, "Is this seat taken?" Yeah, she gets that a lot. Giant woman, and all that.

He shakes his head. The word POTIONS is written out on the covers of his notebook and folder, and a bold, neat script.

"Thanks," she says and sits. "My name's Roshanak."

He offers a brittle smile. "Cullen," he replies.

"I'm sure you'll hear the question all day, but you're new, right?"

He nods.

"Where are you from?" she asks.

"Kirkwall," Cullen says. "I-I mean, Honnleath. I'm from Honnleath."

Those are two very different places. Whatever, he seems nervous enough without her questioning everything. "Potions?" She gestures at his notebook.

"Um, yeah. Like, Harry Potter?" He says, and his cheeks go pink. "Chemistry is the muggle version of potions, I've always thought."

Roshanak grins. "Well, we're going to get along just fine, I think. What house are you in?"

Cullen shrugs. "Hufflepuff, maybe?" He looks down at the table and fidgets with his pencil. "What about you?"

"Gryffindor, definitely. Pottermore told me so," she says. "Twice."

He frowns. "Twice?"

"I had to check, didn't I? So what if I have two accounts now, right? Like, this is serious business. Knowing my Hogwarts house is important to my identity."

His smile is a little more genuine.

Class starts, and they don't get much time to talk, because the teacher is evil and jumps right into the first lesson.

When the bell rings, everyone floods the halls, and Ro turns to Cullen and asks, "You know where you're going?"

"I think so."

"Okay. Hey, if you have second lunch, you should come sit with me and my people," she says. "You'll see me. I'm hard to miss."

He chuckles and says, maybe a little breathlessly, "Thank you."

* * *

Cullen realizes that he actually might fit in with Roshanak's friend group. They welcome him to their lunch table with honest smiles and for a split second he wonders if he's inadvertently joined a cult. A cult full of decent people who all introduce themselves and don't come off as creepy or uncomfortably weird at all. There's Roshanak, Cassandra, Cole, Sera, Dorian, Thom, Hissrad, Josephine, and Leliana. A few of them had classes with Cullen earlier, and no one bugs him too much about where he's from. 

Sera offers to trade her cookies for the pudding cup Mia packed in his lunch. (That was a battle--he can pack his lunch himself. He's sixteen, not six. Mia refused to listen. He trades the pudding out of spite. Also, he likes cookies more than pudding anyway.)

Dorian and Hissrad bicker over whether or not Dorian should eat, because he's apparently not hungry. It reminds Cullen of his parents, the way they harp on each other, fondly, and he feels a little homesick. Roshanak jumps in between the two and shoves half of her peanut butter and jelly sandwich in Dorian's mouth. Hissrad's laugh booms through the whole cafeteria.

"Fuck you, Adaar," Dorian says once he's done chewing.

"I love you, too, Dodo," she chimes.

He glares, but it's without heat.

The rest of the group gives up bits and pieces of their lunches and cobbles together enough of a meal for Dorian, who is angry about it, and says, "I'm going to have to eat all of this, aren't I? It's not like any of you dolts will accept them back."

"You're right," Josephine says and takes a bite of a carrot, as if punctuating her point.

The others hide their grins poorly. Cullen suspects there's a story he doesn't know, but he just got here. He hasn't unlocked that dialogue option yet, or whatever the real world version of that is. But he's... he's okay here. He doesn't feel like running or hiding or lashing out or hitting a wall or anything else that he's been wanting to do the last few months.

Cullen doesn't understand. This wasn't meant to happen.

Roshanak points out a few others in the room that she considers 'her people.'

"There's Vivienne. She's kinda bitchy, but totally badass," she says about an elegant-looking senior sitting with a coterie of other elegant-looking people. Vivienne inclines her head in a nod when Roshanak waves.

"Varric is my bud. Hawke, the tall girl with dark hair? She's my bud, too," Ro explains, gesturing at the table nearest the windows. The people sitting there are loud, but that must be normal since no one is staring or glaring at them.

The girl in question, Hawke, notices Ro's gaze and waves. "Roshanak Adaar, my dear lady, how was your summer?" she hollers.

"Elspeth Hawke, my beloved paper crane, it was long and boring. How was yours?" Ro calls back.

"Varric and I went spelunking!"

Ro cackles. "What the fuck?"

"I know, right? I'll tell you about it later," Hawke says.

Roshanak points at Hawke with a mock-warning look on her face. Hawke waves her away.

"Solas has third lunch, I'm pretty sure. He's a senior. I think he might hate me, but he's too cool to say so," Roshanak tells Cullen. "You'll meet him eventually. There aren't that many people at this school."

"Um, thanks for letting me sit with you," Cullen decides to say, and he can feel the flush on his face even before he finishes.

Ro smiles.

* * *

So, Cullen joins Ro's eclectic group of weirdos. It's nice. He's quiet, but sometimes they need more quiet. Roshanak invites him to a few hangouts at her house, but he always has an excuse or says no. It doesn't make sense, but he seems like an extreme introvert and Roshanak has a hard time understanding extreme introverts. 

He makes a good chem partner, and a good debater when it comes to putting fictional characters into Hogwarts houses. That matters more to her than whether or not he wants to meet her cat.

One day, in the middle of October, she finds him studying on the lawn outside the school. It's almost an hour since the final bell rang, and maybe he's waiting for a ride? Roshanak was helping out in the library, like she does every Thursday.

It looks like Cullen's reading, and he doesn't even notice her approach. She plops down beside him and greets, "What's cookin', good lookin'?"

It takes Cullen a few moments to recover from being startled by her sudden presence, and a few more moments to comprehend what she's said. Then, he turns this bright shade of scarlet and stutters out a non-response.

"Ah," she replies. "I see."

Here's something Roshanak has learned about Cullen in the last few weeks: He's very cute when he blushes.

Ergo, she does everything she can to make him blush.

He clears his throat and his hands tighten on his book. "Reading."

"I can see that," she says. "Are you waiting for a ride?"

"Um, yeah. My sister's getting me. She got caught up at work."

"What does she do?"

"She's a nurse. At the children's hospital," he says.

"Do you want me to give you a ride? My car loves people," she confides.

He huffs a laugh. "I don't want to impose--"

"Cullen, it's no problem. And this way your sister doesn't have to worry about you," she reasons.

He sighs. "Let me call her first to let her know."

"Yep," Ro says and flops down on the grass, using her backpack as a pillow.

"Hey, Mia," Cullen says into his phone. There's a faint sound of a woman's voice. "No, I'm okay. A friend offered to take me home." Pause. "Yeah. Her name is Roshanak." Longer pause, Cullen clears his throat. "Yes, I did." Pause "I don't know." Exasperated pause. "She said she doesn't mind." Pause. Pause. "Yeah, I will. Okay. Bye. Love you, too."

Cullen rolls his eyes. "She wanted to know where your name's from."

"It's Persian. Like, Ancient Persian. Times Old Persian."

His expression is utter bewilderment for a few moments, but he recovers well. "Oh. That's cool. I'll let her know."

Ro rolls to her feet and offers Cullen a hand up. They head to her car; she has to adjust her pace because her legs are so much longer than his. "Cullen, I'd like you to meet Potato, my precious vehicle," she says when they get to her shit-bucket Mazda. It wasn't always a shit-bucket, but that was in the 90s, and then she went and blew the speakers out playing Duran Duran's "Whip It" at full blast for a couple hours.

"Um," Cullen says, eyeing the maroon machine.

"You don't have to say hello. She can't hear you and doesn't speak English," Roshanak unlocks the car and throws her bag in the back.

He's looking at Ro like he's never seen anything or anyone so bizarre in his life. Which, fair.

Roshanak flashes a grin and he huffs a laugh.

Cullen slides into the front seat and holds his bag to his chest.

"Seat belt!" Roshanak says, and puts on her own. "Potato won't start without everyone wearing seat belts."

"I don't think that's a feature in this model," Cullen replies, dry, but buckles up.

"Shh, you don't know my car. You don't know my life."

Cullen snorts.

* * *

It... becomes a Thing after that first day. Roshanak giving Cullen rides. Mia is beside herself with relief, and Cullen hadn't realized how difficult it was for her to fit her schedule around driving him to and from school. Roshanak doesn't seem to mind. At all. She even offers to pick him up, because apparently she's a really kind person? Cullen doesn't understand. This wasn't supposed to happen. He was gonna be alone and aloof and focus on school. _  
_

Mia gives him a few dollars every week to help Ro pay for gas money. Ro's surprised by this, but she smiles and she's kind of amazing when she smiles.

"You'll have to wait longer when basketball season starts," Ro says one day on their way to his apartment complex. "On game nights, I might not be able to drive you at all, depending on where we're playing."

"I could come with," he offers. He didn't know he was going to offer that. He hadn't planned on going to Ro's basketball games, but he likes being around her. Cassandra and Sera are on the team, too.

"Really? That's kind of a commitment," Ro warns. "Basketball season can get hardcore real fast."

"And driving me to and from school isn't a commitment?" he counters.

"Sure, but not on the same level. Your sister has driven you, and could again if she had to, right? You could take the bus."

Cullen _hates_ the bus. He hates feeling closed in, with all the people, and he shudders. Roshanak gives him a wary, concerned look.

"I'm fine," he says.

"Okay," she allows. "But, yeah, we have a bit of time before you decided to become a groupie or not."

Cullen chokes. "Roshanak!"

She grins. "It's okay. Half the team is gay, and the other half is either already taken or not interested," she says.

He wants to know which category she's in. Sera and Dorian are gay. Cole doesn't know what he is, besides human. Hissrad and Leliana make no secret of their variety of preferences. Josephine is asexual. But biromantic, she makes sure people know, Because Romantic Orientations Are Important, Too. (Cullen had never heard the term 'asexual' before. He looked it up later, and... it was like something clicked into place. He sat on his bed, staring at his laptop screen, while a quiet revelation happened in his brain.)

Cullen clears his throat. He and Ro--they're friends. Definitely friends. She's a better friend than he's had in ages. Since elementary school, and how can he even gauge whether or not his childhood friendships were actually good? Doesn't matter, since Ro's more important than the people he knew ten years ago. Still, Roshanak and Cullen--they don't talk about serious things. Not really. She notices when he's uncomfortable, and steers the conversation elsewhere, and he's so thankful that she has an amazing degree of empathy and tact.

"Can I--?" he starts, then huffs and looks out the window.

"Can you what?"

"Can I ask which half you're in?" he wonders, and his eyes flicker to her, then out the window. He looks at her again, and she doesn't seem offended or upset, but he's not sure if he's ever seen her look angry so he doesn't know what to look for.

"Like, sure," she replies. "I don't mind you asking. I'm in the second half. Not that I'm straight. Just... not looking for the moment, you know?"

"I guess."

Ro smiles at him, quick, before turning back to the road. "I'm probably demisexual. Panromantic."

"I'm really not familiar with those terms. I had to look up pansexual and asexual," he admits.

"Oh, that's really good. That you're actually looking for answers, I mean. Not everyone cares to."

Cullen frowns. "That's idiotic. Why wouldn't I want to better understand my friends?" He hasn't had friends to understand before, maybe he's doing it wrong?

"You're a solid dude, Cullen," Ro pronounces.

"Thanks."

She laughs, and then explains what demisexual and panromantic are, like it's no big deal. It isn't, at least to her. She's so comfortable with labels and phrases and what words can or should mean--it's like there's another, hidden language in the world that only certain people know, when really everyone should know.

"Laters, taters!" she shouts in a truly terrible British accent when she drops him off.

Cullen's laughing so hard it takes him a few tries to open the main door.

She doesn't drive away until she knows he's safely inside.

* * *

Roshanak has so many weird phrases saved up. She's had them saved up for AGES. Like, seriously, forever.

The last time she used one, everyone ignored her. Well, they're desensitized to her strangeness by this point.

But guess what? Cullen isn't. He's still getting used to her. He laughs at her stupid rhymes, or at least he blushes a lot and, hey, WIN-WIN.

She grins the rest of the way home.

* * *

"Ahoy, boy!" Ro greets him on a too-bright Monday morning.

Cullen has his arms folded on the table, and he hides his face away from everything in the folds of his sweatshirt sleeves. Then, he squints up at her, and tries to figure out what she just said. "What."

She rolls her eyes with her whole body, which is actually pretty impressive. Especially at this early hour. Cullen can't sass anyone until at least ten o'clock.

He keeps squinting. "Were you one of those kids who wanted to be a pirate when they grew up?"

She snorts. "Of course. I saw Pirates of the Caribbean. Why, weren't you?"

"Not really. I wanted to join the Fellowship of the Ring more," he tells her.

She pretends to wipe sweat off her forehead. "Whew. I was worried a moment there that I couldn't be friends with you anymore, but you've redeemed yourself."

"Wonderful," he deadpans, and drops his head back down on his arms.

Roshanak pats his shoulder. In a secretive voice she says, "Just think, when today is over, you won't have to deal with another Monday for an _entire week_."

Cullen chokes on a laugh, and then accidentally swallows some spit and that starts a coughing fit. Ro lets him have a few drinks from her water bottle.

He doesn't know if his face is more red from embarrassment or from nearly hacking up a lung.

* * *

Thursday happens, like it always does. Cullen waits for Ro in the library now that it's chillier outside. His head's resting on his arms again, and his fingers grip the fabric of his hoodie, tight. The librarian casts him a worried glance, and then she meets Ro's eyes and points at him. Roshanak mouths, "It's fine." Ms. Wynne doesn't seem convinced, but it's already a few minutes past the time she's allowed to keep Roshanak, so she lets it go.

Roshanak makes sure she makes some noise when she sits besides Cullen. "What's up, buttercup?" she asks.

He turns his head to look at her. "No sleeping well."

"Do you know why?"

He shrugs.

What a lovely non-answer. Cullen is so reserved, it's almost painful.

Roshanak reaches out and runs her fingers through his hair. He startles, then melts into the contact. Like a cat.

She still doesn't actually know much about him. He's shy, quiet, smart, likes books, and can keep up with all of her nerd references. He likes soccer more than basketball, but thinks they're similar enough to like basketball, too. His middle name is Stanton, which is stupid but she's not about to tell his parents that. Cullen claims he's already told his parents that it's stupid, but it's a family name so he has to live with it or invoke the wrath of some great uncle or grandma.

Speaking of family, Ro knows that he lives with his sister. And his sister's dog, who she's never met, but wants to meet really, really badly. Roshanak doesn't know if Cullen's parents are dead or just absent or something else. He likes his sister, which is good, and his apartment is in an alright part of town. Not that there are many sketchy places in Haven. Like, there totally are, but Roshanak hasn't been to those parts because she doesn't want to get shanked this early in life.

The point is--she wants to know more about him. She knows almost everything about her other friends, and they know everything about her, and yeah, sure, not all friend groups operate all up in one another's business, but her people are better off that way.

Besides, most of them went through middle school together. So, hey, shared trauma.

"Cullen," she says, and keeps touching his hair. It's curly and soft and she likes the color. "You want to come hang out at my house tomorrow? My moms are making Indian food."

He lifts his head, and her hand fall to his shoulder.

"Is that okay?" he asks. There's this worried-hopeful-sad look on his face, and this is the first time he hasn't outright rejected her offers to chill together, and maybe that scares him. Roshanak doesn't know, but he looks like an unhappy puppy and it sucks.

"Yeah. They love having my friends over," she says. "I'll even convince them to go easy on the spice so your face doesn't melt off."

"Thanks." He offers a wan smile.

Roshanak nods and pushes herself to her feet. "Come on, let's get you home and then you can languish over your homework and go to bed early."

"I don't normally languish over homework," he mentions, and stands, slings his backpack onto his shoulders.

"Yeah, yeah, Mr. Academia over here," she drawls and elbows his arms a bit.

He elbows her back, and she drapes her arm over his shoulders. He stumbles a little, but doesn't pull away.

* * *

Roshanak lives in decent-sized house. There's a three-car garage and a basketball hoop stands tall in the driveway. Once on the foyer, he can see it's a split-level. The walls are painted in cool and neutral colors. Whatever her parents are making--it smells phenomenal.

As soon as they're through the front door, Ro calls out a greeting in rolling, lilting language Cullen's never heard. He opens his mouth to ask about it, but then her parents are there and, well.

Roshanak's mothers are... very tall. And Cullen no longer wonders why Roshanak is so tall herself.

Also, Roshanak must have gotten her friendliness from her parents, because they greet him with hugs and don't seem at all bothered that he's gone a little quiet. Ro sticks by his side, and he's glad for that.

Issra doesn't talk as much as Rani, but they both say things along the lines of, "Roshanak's told us about you! We're pleased to meet you!"

Cullen is inordinately proud that he makes the proper response of, "I'm glad to meet you, too. Thank you for having me over for dinner." And he doesn't have to fake a smile.

When her parents filter back upstairs, Roshanak pulls Cullen downstairs. "Welcome to my lair!" she crows and throws open a door at the end of a hall to reveal her bedroom. And... Cullen isn't surprised that she has a bed with a million pillows or that the desk is a perfect example or organized chaos. (His own desk is like that; he can recognize organized chaos from several yards away.)

The colors are muted, darker here than what he's seen of the rest of the house. Posters and magazine clippings are plastered over most of the opposite wall--there's basketball paraphernalia all throughout the space, mixed in with the proof that Ro's as much a geek as she is an athlete. The bookshelf catches most of Cullen's interest, and he shuffles over to it while Ro unloads her backpack.

"If you want to borrow anything, you're welcome to," she tells him. "My music, too," she adds and points to the CD case on top of the bookcase.

He gives her a long look. "Thank you." Cullen's never been comfortable lending out his books--too much of his stuff's been returned to him damaged.

"Sure," she shrugs and sits on the edge of her bed.

A calico cat slinks in through the open door and creeps forward to investigate Cullen's foot. He kneels and holds his hand out. The cat sniffs his fingers, then rubs her head over his hand. Cullen smiles and scratches her ears and beneath her chin. "Hello," he greets her in a soft voice. She purrs in reply.

"That's Lady Eboshi," Ro says. "But she mostly just responds to Lady."

Lady rubs up against Cullen's leg before she joins Roshanak on the bed.

"Um, I don't think I asked before, but what do your parents do?" he asks and sits in front of the books, head tilted to the side, reading the titles.

"Mum-Rani is a veterinarian, and Mum-Issra is a pediatrician."

Cullen makes a sound of acknowledgement. "What language were you speaking upstairs?"

"Tamil. I'm, like, third generation Indian," Ro says.

"I didn't know that you're bilingual," Cullen comments. He abandons the books and scoots around to face her.

She slides off her bed, joins him on the floor. "Really? I haven't had any non-English conversations with Dorian?" she asks, puzzled.

"Not that I've noticed?"

She makes a small noise. "Huh. Weird. That is definitely something we do. More so when we're surrounded by people who aren't our people, though."

"Makes sense."

"Sometimes I can, indeed, make sense."

He smiles, leans his shoulder against her bed. "You have a nice house. At least, what I've seen of it."

"I guess I shouldn't be showing you the dungeons then, right?" she asks.

He quirks an eyebrow. "Are they historically accurate dungeons?"

"Sorry, no. Just generic, mock-medieval trash. I couldn't afford any prisoners, either," she replies.

"Oh well," he sighs.

Roshanak grins, then snaps her fingers and says, "Hey, I wanted to ask if you went to bed early last night."

Cullen frowns. That's such a strange thing to ask. She's so strange.

"Come on, Cullen, I need to know if you're feeling better today!"

"Then why didn't you just ask that?"

"Sometimes you don't respond to direct questions," she points out.

He... didn't know that was happening. He swallows, stares down at a patch of carpet. "Sorry."

"Hey," Ro says, soft, soft, soft.

He grunts a response.

"You don't need to be sorry. Whatever is going on, whatever's already gone on in your life--I don't wanna push you into talking to me about anything, or-or trigger you--"

His head snaps up at the word 'trigger.' How much of him can she read? He stares at her, at her eyes, her face, and she's so earnest it's almost painful to look at, to understand, to accept.

Ro quirks an eyebrow. "Whatever you are, it's okay. Know what I mean, jellybean?"

He can't help but smile at that. "Jellybean?"

"No, dude, you have to answer the question," she chides.

He takes a deep breath, fills his lungs, and then lets it out slow and steady. "Yeah, I understand. I'm alright. Thanks." Her room smells like her, of course, like sandalwood and something that reminds him of ferns and moss. It's nice.

"Alright. Good." And then Ro's off talking about how she and Dorian tormented a bully in middle school by speaking nonsense phrases in Tamil whenever said bully was around. They'd try to get each other to laugh--eventually it was less about making the jerkwad paranoid and more about seeing who could come up with the most bizarre sentence. But the bully was still pretty paranoid, and, "I think he still has a healthy fear of Indians to this day," Ro says.

"Does he go to our school?"

"Nope. Transferred to Jader after middle school."

"Fewer Indians in Jader, I'm assuming," Cullen says.

Ro chuffs. "God, I'll bet. Like, Haven isn't the most happenin' place in the world, but at least we've got more than one kind of brown person here. Also, did you know that hardcore bird watchers show up throughout the year to sit in the nature preserve and watch migrations or whatever?"

"Bird watchers travel in order to watch birds?"

"I guess so. Otherwise they're using that as a cover, but out of all the covers you could have to go to sit in the forest, I'm not sure bird watching is the best one."

"What are your theories?"

"Doomsday cult. Sera says they're the evil shadow government Illuminati, like in The X-Files. Josephine's parents have a bed and breakfast, and she claims they're mostly decent people," Ro says. "And I'm thinking... well, of course you're going to be decent at the place where you sleep. Josie agrees they're weird. But, you know, pot-kettle."

"There's no such thing as normal," Cullen confirms.

"Normal is a conspiracy to undermine the proletariat classes, and delay the great revolution against the bourgeoisie!" she cries and punches the air above her head.

Cullen presses his face into her bed, laughing into the blankets. They're reading Marx in history. Roshanak keeps quoting it, or nearly quoting it, and it's horrifying and hilarious because... why? Why is she like this? God, he's so fond of her, this weird person.

Dinner is absolutely amazing. His face doesn't melt off. Indian desserts should be illegal, they're so good. Issra packs some food for him to take home and he has half a mind to not share with Mia.

* * *

Roshanak's almost asleep when her phone chimes with a text.

It's Cullen. They exchanged numbers soon after she started driving him to and from school.

_Mia wants to have you over asap. Asked me 12x if I said thank you to your parents_ , he writes.

She replies, _I think you said thank you at least 12 times. Especially after Mum-Rani gave you the rest of the gulab jamun._

_Keeping that for myself. None for Mia._

_Solid plan._

_Goodnight, Ro. Thanks. 13x now._

_Night, homie :)_

* * *

"What's the story, morning glory?" she asks when she picks him up on Monday.

There's a chance she spends her entire weekends thinking up these phrases, and that kinda worries Cullen. Doesn't she have homework or chores or something else to do with her time? "Oh my god, Ro," he groans.

"What?" she replies.

He reaches for the dash and turns the heat up. It's actually, honestly cold today. Frost on the grass cold. Chilly. Whatever. It's actually fall. Nearing Halloween. Everything that gives him allergies is dead and thank god for that. He slumps back in his seat and closes his eyes. He missed the cold. Gives him a good reason to wear layers.

"Seriously, what's up?" Ro asks.

The noise he makes is apathetic and lethargic. Maybe a little pathetic, too, if he wants to be honest with himself.

"Cullen."

There's a split second of indecision, but then he says, "My psychiatrist has me on a different anti-depressant. It's messing with my sleep schedule, but the insomnia might be one of my symptoms, not a side effect of the meds."

Roshanak drives a few blocks without saying anything, and Cullen can't look at her. "How long have you been on whatever you're on?" she asks.

"About two weeks."

"So, side effects should be going away soon, right?"

"What?"

"Is it an SSRI?"

He blinks. "Yeah."

"Yeah, you should be fine in a few more days." She glances over at him. "That what your doctor said, I'm assuming."

He shrugs. "More or less. I'm supposed to call--wait, why do you know about anti-depressants?"

"I've been on Zoloft since I was, like, thirteen," she replies. "I know how it goes. For awhile there, I was also on meds to help with the insomnia, but I got better." She offers a small smile.

"Oh." It's not a very intelligent response, but he can't really think of anything else to say. He... didn't expect Ro, of all people, to have problems like his. She's been at it for a few years, and here he is, just starting to feel better. It's a comfort to know that everything he's feeling, she's probably gone through, too. And even if she hasn't, she'd understand. She'd get it.

"Thank you for telling me," Ro adds.

He nods, but isn't sure if she sees.

* * *

Roshanak unleashes an ungodly squeal when she meets Cullen's dog. She can't help it. Gwen is the most adorable. "Oh my goodness, aren't you the sweetest!" she crouches down and Gwen props her feet up on Ro's knees. "You are even cuter than Cullen, wow, good work, pup!"

Cullen shuts the apartment door behind them. She glances at him; ah, there it is--blushing. It's been awhile since she's seen him blush.

She hefts the dog up in her arms and says to Cullen, "How now, brown cow?" She wiggles Gwen's paws at him.

"Roshanak, what does that even mean?" he demands. He sounds actually irritated by the phrase.

"I have no clue, boo."

He makes a disgusted noise that he very likely picked up from Cassandra.

"It felt like the thing to say, Cullen," she tells him. "Local Giantess Befriends Corgi, Spouts Nonsense, more at ten!"

Cullen tugs his phone out of his pocket and glances at the screen, tries to hide his smile. "Mia should be here soon. She's bringing pizza."

"Ah, the American Ambrosia," Ro hums. "I approve of this cultural exchange our families are doing."

Cullen scoffs. "Isn't pizza supposed to be Italian?"

"Are you Italian?"

"Not at all. We're English and Irish, for the most part. I think my mom has an old recipe book stored somewhere from when we came here. We could make a fish pie."

Roshanak can feel her face light up. "Can we? I'm a fan of fish, and an even bigger fan of savory pies." When she was maybe six or seven, she subsisted on chicken pot pies for three months before her parents staged an intervention.

"Next time, maybe?" Cullen hedges. "I have to ask my mom for the recipe."

"Sweet," Roshanak coos and sets down the dog.

Cullen's sister does, in fact, arrive fairly soon afterwards, bearing pizzas. She's still in her scrubs and the family resemblance between her and Cullen is astounding. Not because of the scrubs, but still. Of course, it's no big thing when family members look like each other, but Ro's always fascinated by it.

They're both blonde, with curly hair, and their complexions are the same. Mia's eyes are a darker brown than Cullen's. She's maybe ten years older than Cullen, but Roshanak's pretty terrible at guessing ages. Also, Mia's eyes go wide when she sees Ro, much like Cullen's did when they first met. Then she smiles, and it's tired but warm. Almost like sitting a couple feet away from a campfire.

"You must be Roshanak," Mia says and sets the pizza boxes down on the kitchen counter.

"Yep, that's me," Roshanak replies. "Thanks for inviting me over."

"No, thank you for being Cullen's ride," Mia replies. She bends to pat Gwen on the head. "I'm long overdue in inviting you over."

Roshanak lifts a shoulder in a half-shrug. "I'm happy to help. It's good to have a driving buddy."

Cullen clears his throat. He's already set the table and pulled an array of drinks from the refrigerator.

"Thanks, kiddo," Mia says and presses a quick kiss to his temple. The two of them lean together for a moment, then break apart and move onto dinner.

Something... something stirs inside Ro's chest. As if she recognizes what just happened, but she has no reason to, no context for why Cullen and his sister take comfort in simple proximity to each other. Well, besides the obvious--that they're family and they love each other and they come from a physically affectionate household. A lot of people need to touch and be touched, Ro knows that, and yet... there's something in the way they both relax a little more.

They take care of each other.

It makes her think that maybe they've faced bad things together, or maybe they were scared of the same thing for a long time, or maybe--

"Roshanak?" Cullen questions her.

"Whoa, I totally checked out for a moment there," Roshanak says with a laugh. "I bet you could've looked in my eyes and seen the back of my skull." She sits at the table and snags a couple pizza slices.

"That's kind of creepy, Ro," Cullen states.

Mia chortles.

Later, when evening wanes into night, Cullen walks her down to the parking lot.

Roshanak unlocks her car and turns to say goodbye. "Take it easy, sleazy." She even throws in a small, sloppy salute.

He gapes. "I'm not sleazy!"

"Hat-trick!" she crows, sliding into the driver's seat. Three bad rhymes in one day; Roshanak is perfection incarnate. She's transcended to another plane of verbal and linguistic existence. Valhalla awaits her.

"Wrong sport," Cullen calls through the window.

She sticks her tongue at him and pulls out of the parking space.

In the rear view mirror, she can see Cullen shake his head and smile before he goes back inside.

* * *

On Halloween, Cullen falls asleep on the sofa in Roshanak's living room. He doesn't mean to. They were supposed to be tag-teaming candy duty while her parents were at some non-Halloween-related party for Real Adults, but the sofa is incredibly comfortable and he doesn't spend more than a few moments fighting off the drowsiness. 

Mia has a night shift. The rest of Roshanak's group of friends--well, technically they're Cullen's group of friends now, too--are either out pulling pranks (Sera, Leliana, Josie), partying (Dorian, Hissrad), or trying to sleep and likely failing (Cassandra, Cole). Roshanak explained that freshman year she was out pranking with Sera, and they very nearly got arrested. The story ended with Roshanak picking Sera up bridal style, and sprinting away into the forest to avoid police cars. After that, Ro decided to be a good citizen and hand out candy.

Roshanak wakes him up around eleven, and asks, "Did you want to sleep here, or should I bring you home?"

"Home, please," he croaks. "Sorry."

"For what?"

He sits up. "I was supposed to help."

"Trust me when I tell you that handing out free candy to small children is not a hardship for me," she says.

Cullen laughs. "Is there any left?"

"If you like Almond Joys and Tootsie Rolls," she replies. "I sure as heck do, but I've been called heathen for less."

"I like coconut."

"I'll bag a few Almond Joys for the road, then."

"Thanks."

Mia ends up eating half the candy when she gets home, but Cullen can't really be mad at her. He'd still be in the red if they were keeping tally of all the Halloween candy he's stolen from her.

* * *

November happens. When November happens, that means basketball starts happening.

It means that Roshanak has practice after school during the weekdays for a couple hours. Coach Shokrakar occasionally threatens the team with Saturday morning practices, but she never follows through. Try-outs happen the first week of the season, and then begins the process of integrating the new teammates in with the rest of the team. There's a couple freshman who show a great deal of potential, and Ro wonders if she should start grooming one of them to be her replacement.

Initially, Cullen waits for her in the library. Then he starts showing up in the hallway outside the gym. By the last week in November, he's sitting up in the bleachers, earbuds in his ears, doing his homework. If he finishes before practice ends, he usually watches or reads a book or does both.

Once a week, Roshanak drops him off at his therapist instead of at home. That was an interesting conversation to have--he was incredibly stutter-y and embarrassed to ask, but it's not like the appointments are super out of the way or anything like that. Roshanak offered to drive him home afterwards and then he just stared at her for a very long moment, radiating surprise and wonder. He recovered, and said that Mia will get him, but the way he said it... and he looked at Ro, as if waiting for the other shoe to drop.

But there was nothing else to say, really. Ro's not about to ask why he goes to therapy. He has a psychiatrist and a therapist--it's obvious that he's working on mental health stuff, and that Mia supports him. That's the only information Roshanak needs to know. If he wants to tell her anything else, she'll listen. Hopefully he knows that.

* * *

Ro's first game is on a Friday in early December; they play Adamant High, from a couple towns over. The Frostback Anchors play circles around the Adamant Griffons, though it was obvious that the other players were doing their best. Cullen could admire them for that.

After the game, Cullen waits for Roshanak by her car. She comes bounding out of the school, beaming, hair wet from the showers, bag slung over her shoulder and across her chest. There's a bounce to her step; everything about her is all excitement and exhaustion.

"Slap my hand, black soul man!" She holds her hand out for a high-five, and grins.

Cullen can feel his face shape into something wholly unimpressed. "Roshanak, I'm white." He might be the whitest kid she knows, honestly. His middle name is Stanton, for the love of god.

"Slap my hand, snow-white man!"

Cullen rolls his eyes but gives her the high-five. She's an impressive athlete; he kept catching himself watching only her, instead of following whoever had the ball like he was supposed to. The razor-sharp focus she had while playing... it was completely exhilarating to see that side of her--determined, confident, unfaltering.

Only a sliver of that came through during practices, and to see her focus full-force is something else.

Ro pumps her fist in triumph. "Yes! Did you see that last shot I made?" She mimics shooting a basket.

"I watched the whole game, Ro, I saw everything."

"But you totally saw that shot."

He allows an indulgent smile on his face. "Yeah, I saw it. It was pretty amazing."

"And did you see Cassandra's footwork? Oh my gosh, she's the best. Adamant didn't know what hit them. Well, they did know. We hit them with our epic teamwork and natural talent," Roshanak rambles.

"Aren't you going to--shouldn't you be spending time with your teammates?" Cullen asks. He figured she'd bring him home and then go to a party or whatever it is athletes do after winning games.

"Most of them are going over to Cassandra's," Ro says. "I don't really feel like going, and everyone's cool with that."

Oh. Why wouldn't Ro want to go to a party? She loves being around people. Cullen doesn't understand, but there she is, a bona fide people-person. "Where are your parents?"

"They might be talking to some of the other parents," she says. "That's something they do. Wanna get ice cream with us?"

Cullen was pretty sure people stopped doing ice cream after sporting events before they hit high school, but he's never done school sports, so he doesn't actually know. Maybe he'll join the track team in the spring.

"Uh, sure," he says. "Mia's working a late shift, so I should let her know where I'm at."

"Yeah, it'd be no good if you ended up lying in a ditch somewhere. Don't know how you'd swing that one, but stranger things have happened."

He turns his phone end-over-end in his hands. "Do you--Would, um," he cuts off and rubs the back of his head. "Do your parents have any rules about sleepovers?"

Ro's still smiling. "Sure. I have to tell them where I'll be, for how long, and the resident adult needs to know I'm there."

"Mia won't be getting back until super late, and I need to walk Gwen, and maybe you could come with and then sleep on the sofa or something?" he asks.

He's never asked anyone, let alone a girl, to stay over to sleep. In elementary school he went to a few birthday sleepovers, but never had any himself. When he asked Mia if Ro could stay over a couple days ago, Mia choked on her coffee and it took her a while to get her breath back. He wasn't sure if she was laughing or shocked. Maybe both?

In the end, he assured her that he and Ro weren't dating, that they're just friends, and he'll walk the dog. Mia said, "Well, alright then. I like Ro. She seems like a nice girl. No parties. No sex. No drugs."

Cullen groaned and dropped his head onto the kitchen table. "Mia!"

Now, Roshanak is frowning a little bit and oh no maybe he's done something wrong?

"I'd love to, but I don't know if my parents would be okay with that. I mean, I've had sleepovers with Dorian and Cole before, but Sera and Josephine and Cassandra were there, too," she tells him. "I'd like, though. Because, honestly, why wouldn't I want to spend more time with your dog?"

He raises an eyebrow and folds his arms over his chest.

Ro grins. "I guess you're alright, too."

"What a glowing recommendation," Cullen drawls.

Roshanak's parents join them a moment later and Ro tells them she's been invited over to Cullen's.

Her mothers exchange a Look.

"My sister will be back around two or three in the morning," Cullen says. "She says it's okay as long as we aren't partying."

"And it's hard to party with just two people. Unless you're Dorian. Besides, I don't want him to end up dead in a ditch while he walks his dog," Ro chimes in.

"Thanks, Ro," Cullen sighs. What is with her and ditches tonight?

"Roshanak, you know the rules," Rani says.

"Indeed, I do. We'll be responsible and mature for our age," she replies.

Issra looks like she regrets everything. "You'll be back before noon tomorrow."

"Yep."

"Alright then," Issra says with a nod.

"Ice cream?" Roshanak asks.

They caravan to Dairy Queen, and Ro's parents ask about the new players on the basketball team, now that they can put names to faces to jersey numbers, and about Ro and Cullen's classes, and about how Cullen likes Haven. With anyone else, it might feel like an interrogation, but Rani and Issra are friendly and calm and they actually want to know the answers to their questions.

Roshanak steals the cherry off his sundae and ties the stem in a knot in her mouth. Her parents look at her with fond exasperation.

It's okay, because Cullen was going to give her the cherry anyway.

* * *

They're walking Gwen through a park near Cullen's apartment. It's dark, and chilly, but they both have sweatshirts and Cullen has a beanie to help keep his ears warm. Gwen is a well-behaved dog, neither running ahead or lagging behind. The temperature doesn't seem to be bothering her in the slightest.

Ro has her hands shoved in the pockets of her hoodie, and she wishes she had time to let her hair dry before going out--she can almost feel strands of her ponytail freezing in the blustery, early winter air. The park pathway is well-lit, and a couple joggers have passed by, leaving there-and-gone puffs of vapor in their wakes.

Cullen hasn't said much since they got here. He was open and talkative at Dairy Queen, but then got all quiet when they parted ways with her parents.

Roshanak bumps his shoulder with her elbow. "What's got you glum, chum?"

He startles, blinks at her, coming out of a daze. "What?" He slows, stops, and Gwen sits at his feet.

"You went quiet again," she intones. "And don't say sorry. I'm just wondering why."

He sighs, all heavy and sad. "Just thinking."

"What about?"

He shrugs. "How long have you been bringing me to my appointments?"

It's an odd question, but alright. Cullen's a bit odd himself. "I dunno, a month or so?"

"You didn't ask. About that."

"Ask about what?"

"Why I go to a therapist." He shuffles his feet.

Gwen lays down on the sidewalk with a short sigh.

Apparently he doesn't know that she isn't going to be nosy. "I figured that's your business, dude," Roshanak replies. "If you want to tell me things, then I'm cool about listening. But the details about your mental health--like, I'm not gonna pry, you know? I'm not entitled to anything like that."

He looks up at her, a skeptical look on his face, like he doesn't trust what she's saying but he trusts her and is trying to figure out how that works in reality. That line of thought looks difficult to process and maybe Cullen's trying too hard.

"You're my best friend," he blurts. "And I've only known you since September. That's... I don't know what to do with that."

"You don't have to do anything," she replies. She takes his wrist and drags him and Gwen over to a nearby bench. She scoops up Gwen and sets her on Cullen's lap, and his fingers sink into her fur.

"What's going on, Cullen?" she asks. "Do you want me to ask about your therapist?"

He offers a helpless shrug, and doesn't meet her gaze. "I don't know."

"Tell me when you do know, okay?"

Cullen nods.

"Telling anyone anything important can be scary, even if that person is your best friend," Ro says. "Dorian nearly puked the first time he told me he's gay."

Cullen gives Ro an incredulous look. "Really?"

"Yep." She purses her lips before continuing. "His parents are homophobic dickbags, so it makes sense that he was super nervous about telling anyone else. Most nights he sleeps at either my place or Hissrad's. Sometimes he goes to Cole's or Cassandra's, too."

"I... I mean, I thought maybe he didn't like being at home, but I didn't know it was that bad," Cullen murmurs.

"My moms said he can stay with us, but he really hates being indebted to others," Ro explains. "He says maybe when he gets a job and can pay rent."

"Is it okay that I know this?"

Ro's smile is small, but true. "Yeah, I asked. He honestly would rather have someone else explain his situation, than do it himself. Takes some pressure off of him."

"That makes sense."

They sit in silence for a time, Cullen petting Gwen and Ro trying to see the stars through the trees overhead. Cullen shivers beside her.

"You wanna head back?" she asks.

"Yeah, okay."

Before she gets to her feet, Roshanak turns to him and taps the tip of his nose with her index finger. In a Very Serious voice, she tells him, "You've been touched by an angel."

He holds off for half a moment before he breaks into helpless giggles.

* * *

Cullen wakes in the middle of the night, and heads into the kitchen for a glass of water. He can see Roshanak sprawled on the sofa, feet hanging off the end. He tried to convince her to take his bed, saying that he'd fit better on the sofa, but she wouldn't hear it.

She seems to be sleeping fine, even though the sofa isn't long enough.

Mia comes home just as Cullen finishes his water. Gwen heaves herself up out of her dog bed and trots over to greet Mia.

"Hey, broski," Mia says and presses a kiss to the side of his head, then bends to scratch Gwen behind the ears.

"Hi. How was work?" he asks, voice pitched low so he doesn't wake Roshanak.

"Ugh, tiring. How was Ro's game?" Mia makes an abstract gesture towards the living room.

"They won," he says with a smile. "They played really well."

Mia grins. "Good for them!" Then she yawns. "I should hit the hay. You doing alright?"

Cullen shrugs. "Yeah, I guess."

Her eyes go sharp. "What's going on?"

"Just... Roshanak is a better friend than I deserve," he mutters.

Mia scowls. "Shush. Don't say shit like that," she says. "You deserve good things. You deserve friends and people that actually care about you. Besides, if Roshanak wants to stick around, shouldn't that matter the most?"

"I guess so."

"She likes you. I don't know her as well as you do, but she doesn't come off to me as someone who keeps friends she doesn't actually care about."

Cullen huffs. "She cares about everyone."

"Even better. Then you know she's not faking it."

Cullen sets his glass in the sink and leans his palms against the counter. "I almost told her."

"About Kirkwall?"

He nods.

Mia rests her palm between his shoulder blades and drops her temple to rest against his arm. He's taller than her now. The last time they lived together, he was still in middle school, and wasn't even five feet tall yet. It feels weird, but it's okay.

"I know she won't... it'll be fine," he says.

"It hasn't been that long since you left that shithole," Mia reminds him. "In the grand scheme of things. Take things at your own pace."

"Yeah. But, Mia, I want her to know."

She leans back to look him in the eye. "Then she'll know, when you're ready to tell her. I'm proud of you, Cullen. For everything."

He blinks a few times, takes a deep breath, nods again. Mia give him a one-armed hug, and retreats to her room.

Before he goes back to bed, too, Cullen looks in on Roshanak again. She hasn't moved an inch. Her hair fans out, dark and curled on the pillow, and her sprawled limbs are all angles and lines of grace. Truly, this isn't the first time Cullen's thought that she's beautiful.

* * *

Snow covers Haven three days before winter break.

Roshanak loves snow, and winter, and the holidays. She has a pair of thermos bottles in her car's cup holders, full of the masala chai that Mum-Issra made this morning. She's not sure if Cullen will care for it, but if he doesn't then she'll just drink both.

She pulls up outside Cullen's apartment and a few moments later he climbs in beside her. His cheeks and nose are pinkish from the cold, and he's grinning. Roshanak holds out a thermos for him.

"Why were you waiting outside, you weirdo?" she wonders.

"It snowed!" he replies. "What is this?"

"Chai from the motherland."

Cullen pops open the top of the thermos and smells the contents before he drinks. His face is thoughtful, a smile still at the corner of his mouth. He hums something like approval and pleasure. "It's really good. Thank you. For, you know, sharing."

Ro beams. "Sharing is caring. I'll let Mum-Issra know."

When they're a couple blocks from school, Cullen asks, "Do you have plans for the holidays?" He frowns. "Wait, do you even celebrate Christmas? Indians are mostly Hindu, aren't they?"

"We do celebrate Christmas. Mum-Issra is from a loosely Hindu household and Mum-Rani's family is Catholic. I guess I wasn't raised with a specific religion in mind," Ro explains. "I believe in everything."

Cullen laughs.

"What?" Ro asks. No one's laughed when she's said that before. Sera scoffed a bit and Leliana teased her, saying that she's going to accidentally join a cult one of these days and Roshanak doesn't even _like_ Kool-Aid, so it's not going to be a problem--but no one's ever found a small spot of joy in her words about belief.

"If anyone would believe in everything, it would be you," he says.

"Is that a good thing?"

"Yeah," he replies. "I think you're the only person I know who could do that honestly."

Roshanak can't help but blush at the earnestness in his voice. "Thanks."

From the corner of her eye, she sees him duck his head and take another sip of tea. "So, um, holiday plans?"

"My parents aren't really in contact with their families, so we stay close to home for holidays. You?"

"Mia and I are going back to Honnleath," he says, and his words go sour and dark.

"You don't want to?" Roshanak pulls into a open parking space, but doesn't turn the car off yet.

The back of Cullen's head hits the headrest in an exasperated movement. "No, I very much don't."

"Can I ask why?"

"Mia's about the only family I can deal with. Everyone else just keeps looking at me and it fucks with my anxiety," he grumbles.

Ro's ever heard him swear before. It's a little startling. "I'm gonna assume this isn't something you can get out of?"

"Rutherfords take the holidays seriously," he replies, grave. "It's fine. Mia knows. She has a contingency plan to fake being called into work, so we can come home early if things get bad."

"That's good." She suddenly appreciates Mia a lot more than she used to, and she doesn't even know all the details. "Will you be back before New Years? Everyone's coming to my house, where we will engage in the lauded tradition of eating too much pizza and playing Mario Party until we pass out."

"Um, yeah," he says. "We'll be back a couple days before New Years, I'm pretty sure. Mia can't take too much time off."

"Great!" Ro beams. "See you there, boo bear."

Cullen rolls his eyes at her. An almost-smile plays at his lips.

Later, at lunch, Ro tell the rest of their group that Cullen will be joining them for New Years festivities. Sera cheers; everyone else expresses more moderate levels of approval.

**Author's Note:**

> Fun Fact: I named one of my cats after Dorian, and my eldest brother started calling him Dodo. It's fun to sing the beginning of Uptown Funk using this nickname.
> 
> Also who the fuck knows when the next chapter will be out??? If anyone has requests as to what they'd like to see, e.g. prom, Valentine's day, birthdays, other events that happen during high school in the spring, Please Tell Me. You can drop a comment here, or send me a note on [my tumblr](http://dwarrows.tumblr.com/ask). I will do everything in my power to accommodate you! <3


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